EP1297267A1

EP1297267A1 - Hybrid contact roller bearings for vacuum pump

Info

Publication number: EP1297267A1
Application number: EP01984114A
Authority: EP
Inventors: André Bouille
Original assignee: Alcatel CIT SA; Alcatel SA
Current assignee: Alcatel Lucent SAS
Priority date: 2000-07-06
Filing date: 2001-07-05
Publication date: 2003-04-02
Anticipated expiration: 2021-07-05
Also published as: DE60123425T2; WO2002002957A1; FR2811385A1; JP2004502109A; EP1297267B1; ATE340945T1; US20020136476A1; FR2811385B1; US6877904B2; DE60123425D1

Abstract

The invention concerns a contact roller bearing for a vacuum pump comprising a rotor roller bearing ring (12) a coaxial stator roller bearing ring (13) between which are provided rolling elements (14a, 14b, 14c, 14d) housed in succession and urged to roll on respective raceways of the rotor (12) and stator (13) roller bearing rings. The rolling elements comprise an alternating succession of rolling elements (14a, 14c) whereof the outer surface is made of steel and of rolling elements (14b, 14d) whereof the outer surface is made of ceramic, thereby reducing the resistance to acceleration of the contact roller bearing, which limits the friction and wear of the inner annular surface (16) of the contact roller and the corresponding bearing of the rotor.

Description

HYBRID LANDING BEARINGS FOR VACUUM PUMP

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to the suspension of the rotors of vacuum pumps.

In vacuum pumps, a rotor rotating in rotation in a stator is held by magnetic bearings which, in normal operation, keep the rotor in the radial position centered in the stator with normal centered holding precision, without mechanical contact between the rotor and the stator. The magnetic bearings comprise electromagnets supplied with electrical energy by suitable circuits ensuring a servo-control of the radial position of the rotor in the stator.

The effectiveness of the radial retention of the rotor in the stator is determined by the force of the electromagnets, and the maintenance requires sufficient supply of electrical energy to the electromagnets.

A defect or insufficiency of normal operation of the magnetic bearings can sometimes occur, for example during a sudden and significant stress on the rotor or during an interruption of the electrical supply of the electromagnets. In this case, the magnetic bearings no longer provide the centering function of the rotor, and a "landing" stage occurs in which the rotor goes from a state of maintenance without mechanical contact to a state of maintenance by contact. mechanical. During this landing, the rotor tends to come into contact with the stator. As a result of the very rapid rotation of the rotor, for example of the order of 30,000 revolutions per minute, such contact can cause the destruction of the vacuum pump. To solve this problem, provision has already been made to equip the vacuum pumps with secondary mechanical rolling landing bearings which, failing normal operation of the magnetic bearings, limit the radial displacement of the rotor in the stator by ensuring centering. approximate rotor and limiting the radial movements of the rotor to a value less than the air gap of the magnetic bearings. However, the number of possible landings without significant degradation of the mechanical bearings remains limited, which reduces the reliability of the vacuum pump and increases the frequency of maintenance operations. There is a need to increase the number of possible landings and the duration of operation of the mechanical rolling landing bearings.

The present invention results from the observation that certain defects in the reliability of mechanical rolling landing bearings result from the resistance to acceleration of the landing roll. Indeed, in normal operation of the magnetic bearings having mechanical landing bearings mounted on the stator, the bearings of the mechanical landing bearings are stopped, integral with the stator; when the magnetic bearings stop working, the rotor comes into contact with the still stationary inner rings of the mechanical landing bearings, and rotates the inner rings of the bearings and the rolling elements located between the inner rings and the outer rings ; by the effect of the acceleration resistance of the landing roll, the speed of rotation of the inner rings increases only gradually, so that a slip occurs between the rotor and the inner rings of the mechanical bearings landing. This inevitably results in wear of the respective surfaces in contact with the rotor and the inner rings of the mechanical landing bearings, which gradually increases the clearances and reduces the efficiency of the device; in addition, the friction between the different parts causes the possible appearance of chips or filings which risk blocking the rolling elements of the mechanical bearing.

The phenomena of wear and their consequences are all the more accentuated when the inner rings of the mechanical landing bearings undergo phenomena opposing their rapid acceleration in rotation in order to reach the speed of rotation of the rotor as soon as possible.

In this regard, a primary cause of resistance to the acceleration of the landing roll is its inertia. of the attempts have been made to reduce the inertia of the landing bearings, by using rolling elements having a lower mass. This is how we imagined replacing traditional rolling elements such as stainless steel balls with ceramic balls, with a density much lower than steel. In this case, all the rolling elements are ceramic balls. This results in a much higher production cost, since ceramic balls are much more expensive than steel balls. There is a slight improvement in the longevity of the landing bearings, by reducing the wear phenomena occurring between the rotor and the rotor bearing rings. However, this improvement remains insufficient, especially since it involves a significant additional cost. And this ceramic ball solution has the other drawback of significantly reducing the thermal conductivity between the stator and the rotor, and consequently reducing the cooling capacity of the rotor.

A second cause of resistance to the acceleration of the landing roll seems to be the friction occurring between the consecutive rolling elements themselves, friction which appears to be accentuated by the very high accelerations undergone by the landing roll during a landing. The invention takes advantage of this analysis by proposing a solution making it possible to very significantly reduce this friction.

PRESENTATION OF THE INVENTION Thus, the problem proposed by the present invention is to design a new structure of mechanical rolling landing bearing, which has an increased longevity to allow a greater number of landings and a greater operating time. flawless. For this, the invention provides a particular structure making it possible to reduce as much as possible the resistance to acceleration of the landing roll, and in particular to reduce the frictional forces occurring between the mobile elements of the landing roll and liable to resist the acceleration of the landing roll during a landing. According to another object, the invention aims to reduce the production cost of the vacuum pump landing bearings, by limiting the use of expensive materials.

According to the invention, these effects must be obtained without resorting to means of lubrication by liquid elements capable of polluting the vacuum created by the vacuum pump.

To achieve these and other objects, the invention provides a landing bearing structure for a vacuum pump comprising: - a rotor bearing ring and a coaxial stator bearing ring which define between them a bearing housing ,

- rolling elements housed one after the other in the bearing housing and coming to roll on respective rolling tracks of the rotor and stator bearing rings;

- The rolling elements include an alternating succession of rolling elements whose external surface is made of steel and rolling elements whose external surface is made of ceramic.

According to a simplified embodiment, the rolling elements are spherical balls.

Preferably, the steel rolling elements are made of stainless steel, while the ceramic rolling elements are made of silicon nitride.

The tracks can be made of stainless steel. The rolling elements can all have the same diameter when the bearing is under normal operating temperature conditions. Typical operating temperatures are in the range of 60 ° C to 90 ° C. For this, provision is made for the ceramic rolling elements to have, at room temperature, a diameter slightly greater than the diameter of the steel rolling elements, to compensate for the differences in coefficient of thermal expansion of the ceramic and the steel.

Alternatively, the ceramic rolling elements may have a diameter slightly smaller than the diameter of the steel rolling elements under normal operating temperature conditions. In practice, it is for example then possible to use rolling elements which have the same diameter at ambient temperature. A vacuum pump according to the invention comprises at least one landing bearing as defined above.

For example, such a vacuum pump comprises a rotor movable in rotation in a stator, with at least one radial magnetic bearing which, in normal operation, keeps the rotor centered in the radial position, and with at least one mechanical bearing d landing gear which, in the absence of normal operation of the radial magnetic bearings, limits the radial movements of the rotor in the stator by ensuring an approximate centering of the rotor, a radial clearance being provided between one of the bearing rings of rotor or stator and the corresponding bearing surface of the rotor or stator.

SUMMARY DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Other objects, characteristics and advantages of the present invention will emerge from the following description of particular embodiments, made in relation to the attached figures, among which:

- Figure 1 is a general view in longitudinal section of a vacuum pump whose rotor is held by magnetic bearings and by associated mechanical landing bearings;

- Figure 2 is a detail view in enlarged section of the area A of Figure 1, illustrating a mechanical landing half bearing bearing according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 is an enlarged front view of a landing bearing according to an embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view in partial section of the landing bearing of FIG. 3.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In the embodiment of Figure 1, a vacuum pump generally comprises a stator 1 having a suction inlet 2 axial and a discharge outlet 3 radial. A rotor 4 is mounted for axial rotation in the stator 1 along the longitudinal axis II. The rotor 4 comprises a suction system illustrated by the fins 5, and a shaft 6 journalled in bearings of the stator 1. In the figure, there are two radial magnetic bearings 7 and 8, and two mechanical bearings landing 9 and 10 with radial action landing bearing. For the record, there is also an axial magnetic bearing 11. In normal operation, that is to say in the absence of excessive stress on the shaft 6 of the pump and in the event of normal operation of the magnetic bearings, these correctly maintain the centered axial position of the rotor 4, and the mechanical landing bearings 9 and 10 do not touch the shaft 6.

In the mechanical landing bearing 9, there is a rotor bearing ring 12, disposed near and around the shaft 6 of the rotor 4, and a coaxial stator bearing ring 13 disposed in contact with the stator 1. The rotor bearing rings 12 and stator 13 define between them a bearing housing 19. Rolling elements 14 such as balls, needles or any other type of known rolling elements, are arranged in the bearing housing 19 between the rotor bearing ring 12 and the stator bearing coaxial ring 13, to form a bearing allowing the relative axial rotation of the two bearing rings 12 and 13.

We will now refer to FIG. 2, illustrating in more detail and on a larger scale a mechanical landing half-bearing 9 in situation between the shaft 6 of the rotor 4 and a corresponding portion of the stator 1. We find the element rolling 14 in the bearing housing 19 between the rotor bearing ring 12 and the stator bearing coaxial ring 13. The rolling element 14 rolls on respective rolling tracks 20 and 21 of the rotor bearing rings 12 and stator 13. There is also the radial magnetic bearing 7 which, in normal operation, ensures the centering of the shaft 6 of the rotor 4 in the stator 1, leaving free an annular air gap 15 defining the maximum radial displacement of the shaft 6 in the stator 1. Under the usual conditions, the air gap 15 can be approximately 0.2 to 0.4 mm for example. The purpose of the mechanical landing bearing 9 is to limit the possibilities of radial displacement of the shaft 6 of the rotor 4 in the stator 1 to a value much lower than this air gap 15, to avoid degradation of the magnetic bearings in the event of landing. Between the inner annular face 16 of the rotor bearing ring 12 and a corresponding first bearing 17 of rotor 4, a radial clearance 18 is provided which is significantly less than the air gap 15 but only slightly greater than the precision of normal centered maintenance of the rotor. 4 by the radial magnetic bearing or bearings 7. This normal centered holding accuracy of the rotor 4 is generally very good, less than a few microns.

The stator bearing coaxial ring 13 is engaged and strongly braked or locked in rotation in a front housing of the stator 1, between an axial shoulder 22 and an attached fixing ring 23 held on the stator 1 by screws whose head can be distinguished 24.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, the landing bearing comprises rolling elements in the form of a spherical ball. The rolling elements comprise an alternating succession of rolling elements whose external surface is made of steel and rolling elements whose external surface is made of ceramic. Thus, by way of example, the rolling elements 14a and 14c have an external steel surface, while the rolling elements 14b and 14d have an external ceramic surface.

For rolling elements 14a and 14c made of steel, stainless steel can advantageously be used.

For the rolling elements 14b and 14d made of ceramic, it is advantageous to use silicon nitride. During a landing, the rolling elements 14a-14d enter into rotation, and the adjacent rolling elements such as the elements 14a and 14b come into contact with one another by a portion of their peripheral surface, producing friction. Thanks to the alternation between the steel rolling elements and the ceramic rolling elements, friction always occurs between two rolling elements made of different materials, which promotes sliding and thus reduces the friction forces opposing the rapid acceleration of the landing roll. The tracks 20 and 21 (FIG. 2) can be made of stainless steel. By using only one of every two rolling elements made of a more expensive material such as ceramic, the additional production cost is limited, while simultaneously obtaining very significant advantages over the longevity of the landing bearing and the pump. generally empty.

Another advantage results from the presence of a number of rolling elements 14a, 14c made of steel, a good conductor of heat, which maintains a sufficient cooling capacity of the rotor. For this, provision is made for the rolling elements 14a, 14c made of steel to remain in contact with the rolling tracks 20, 21 under normal operating temperature conditions.

In other words, under these normal operating temperature conditions, the diameter of the ceramic rolling elements 14b, 14d should preferably be less than or at most equal to the diameter of the steel rolling elements 14a, 14c.

During a landing, the operation is as follows: initially, the rotor bearing ring 12 does not touch the shaft 6 which rotates at high speed around its longitudinal axis I-I. When the radial magnetic bearings such as the bearing 7 are interrupted, the rotor 4 can move radially according to the first radial clearance 18 until it comes into contact with the rotor bearing ring 12 which is initially stationary and is located then driven in rotation and also drives the rolling elements 14 in rotation. The stator bearing coaxial ring 13 is blocked or at least braked in rotation in the stator 1.

Because of the inertia and friction in the landing bearing, the rotor bearing ring 12 does not instantly take on the high rotational speed of the rotor 4. Friction therefore occurs between the bearing surface 17 of the rotor 4 and the corresponding inner annular face 16 of the rotor bearing ring 12. By reducing the friction existing between the adjacent rolling elements 14, the rotor bearing ring 12 is rapidly accelerated, and the duration of the friction between the bearing 17 of rotor 4 and the inner annular face 16 of the rotor bearing ring 12. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments which have been explicitly described, but it includes the various variants and generalizations which are within the reach of those skilled in the art. In particular, the landing bearings 9 and 10 can be made integral with the rotor 4, instead of being integral with the stator.

Claims

CLAIMS 1 - Landing bearing for vacuum pump, comprising:

- a rotor bearing ring (12) and a coaxial stator bearing ring (13) which define between them a bearing housing (19),

- rolling elements (14a, 14b, 14c, 14d) housed one after the other in the bearing housing (19) and coming to roll on rolling tracks (20, 21) respective of the rotor bearing rings ( 12) and stator (13), characterized in that the rolling elements comprise an alternating succession of rolling elements (14a, 14c) whose external surface is made of steel and rolling elements (14b, 14d) whose external surface is ceramic. 2 - Landing bearing according to claim 1 characterized in that the rolling elements (14, 14a, 14b, 14c,

14d) are spherical balls.

3 - Landing bearing according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the rolling elements (14a, 14c) steel are made of stainless steel.

4 - Landing bearing according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the rolling elements (14b, 14d) made of ceramic are made of silicon nitride.

5 - Landing roll according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the runways

(20, 21) are made of stainless steel.

6 - Landing bearing according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the rolling elements (14b, 14d) in ceramic have a diameter slightly less than the diameter of the rolling elements (14a, 14c) in steel in the normal operating temperature conditions.

7 - Vacuum pump comprising at least one mechanical landing bearing (9) with rolling bearing according to any one of claims 1 to 6. 8 - Vacuum pump according to claim 7, comprising a rotor (4) movable rotating in a stator (1), with at least one radial magnetic bearing (7) which, in normal operation, keeps the rotor (4) centered in the radial position in the stator (1), and with at least one mechanical landing bearing (9) with landing bearing which, in the absence of normal operation of the radial magnetic bearings (7), limits the radial displacements of the rotor (4) in the stator (1) by ensuring an approximate centering of the rotor (4), a radial clearance (18) being provided between one of the rotor (12) or stator bearing rings (13) and the corresponding bearing surface (17) of the rotor (4) or the stator (1).